“Two shopkeepers were bitter rivals.
Their stores were directly across the street from each other, and they
would spend each day keeping track of each other’s business. If one got a customer, he would smile in
triumph at his rival. One night an angel
appeared to one of the shopkeepers in a dream and said, ‘I will give you
anything you ask, but whatever you receive, your competitor will receive twice
as much. Would you be rich? You can be very rich, but he will be twice as
wealthy. Do you wish to live a long and
healthy life? You can, but his life will
be longer and healthier. What is your
desire?’ The man frowned, thought for a
moment, and then said, ‘Here is my request: Strike me blind in one eye!’” (Thomas Lindberg)
Jealousy is
nothing new to the human race. Selfish
ambition has plagued mankind for generations since that fateful day in the
Garden of Eden. James, the brother of
Jesus, takes special care in James 3:13-4:3 to address the problems that were
evident in the churches of his time and still afflict the church today.
The opposite
of jealousy and selfish ambition is wisdom, but not just any type of wisdom. What is this wisdom? How can the true Christian and disciple of
Christ live out this wisdom? What is the
root cause of jealousy and selfish ambition?
Where does God’s intervention come into play?
Join us this
Sunday as we dig into James’ words of encouragement and conviction. Prayerfully be prepared for the Holy Spirit’s
movement in your own life and in the life of the church as a whole as we look
into the Truth of God’s Word.
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